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Beijing confirms extradition of alleged scam boss from Cambodia
The Straits Times
|January 09, 2026
Prince Bank, a Cambodian bank founded by Chen Zhi, also placed under liquidation
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Accused scam boss Chen Zhi has been extradited to China from Cambodia, Beijing confirmed on Jan 8, after he was indicted by the United States over alleged multibillion-dollar fraud.
Video released by China's Ministry of Public Security on Jan 8 showed Chen in handcuffs as security forces lifted a black bag off his head, after he was escorted off a China Southern plane with armed guards waiting on a runway.
Cambodia said earlier on Jan 8 that Prince Bank, founded by Chen, had been placed under liquidation. The bank is a subsidiary of Chen's Prince Holding Group, one of Cambodia's biggest conglomerates, which Washington alleges has served as a front for "one of Asia's largest transnational criminal organisations".
China's Ministry of Public Security said Chen had been "escorted" back to China from Phnom Penh and lauded the "major achievement in China-Cambodia law enforcement cooperation".
Chinese authorities will soon issue arrest warrants for "the first batch of key members of Chen Zhi's criminal group, and will resolutely apprehend the fugitives", it said in a statement.
This story is from the January 09, 2026 edition of The Straits Times.
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